The Flock Goes to School
by trilogiesrule
Summary: Itex and The School finally defeated, the Flock is left trying to live a normal life with Dr. Martinez and Ella. Mainly, they have to go to school. Triggers of Max's bad memories prove that school isn't as harmless as she originally thought. Rated T because I'm not sure what I'll enter in the future. FAX, but not story consuming and no/minor make out sessions.
1. Chapter 1 and AN

IMPORTANT AN: This is set (sort of) after the third book, but with these changes/truths:

The only person that has powers is Angel, and that is limited to reading minds. No sending thoughts or mind controlling, and I'm only permitting this because that power was there since the beginning. It is almost part of Angel's character.

The Flock has permanently defeated The School/Itex. I will NOT be bringing them back. This is a story about what adjusting to a normal life might be like.

A lot of MR fanfiction writers seem to have the Flock's wings retract into their bodies, which is fine, but James Patterson specifically has the flock wear windbreakers in public and mentions in other places that the Flock's wings actually fold up outside of their bodies, like a bird's. That is the way their wings work in this story.

The public does not know about the Flock's wings

Max doesn't have The Voice

Max and Fang are together

The Flock lives with Dr. Martinez and Ella

Ages: (they're probably wrong, sorry)

Max/Fang/Iggy are fifteen

Ella is thirteen

Nudge is twelve

Gazzy is nine

Angel is seven

Thanks for reading this AN! :)

I don't own _Maximum Ride_. If I did, the series would have stopped after the third book because **trilogiesrule**!

Chapter One (Max POV)

"MAX!" Nudge screeched from downstairs. I groaned, rolling over on my bed. What was it now? "Gazzy just farted! Like, in my FACE! Right as I was coming down the stairs to eat breakfast, too. I'm not hungry anymore 'cause it stinks and Gazzy is just so gross, and…" Nudge didn't stop talking, so I tuned her out. I slid off of my bed and rubbed the heel of my hand into my face as I yawned. As I walked downstairs, I heard Nudge's monologue more clearly.

"...you that if you did that again I would beat you up! And what did you do? You FARTED in my FACE again! Don't go crying to Max because of your bloody nose-" I walked into the kiten to see Nudge standing over a cowering Gasman with blood gushing from his nose and dripping onto the floor.

"NUDGE!" I shouted. "Shut up!" Silence, apart from Gazzy's sobs. "What the heck? That was extremely uncalled for. And Gazzy," I added, knowing that his broken nose wouldn't have happened if it weren't for him provoking Nudge, "when Nudge asks you to stop, you stop." When they stayed silent, I added "Clean this up. NOW! Gazzy, you can deal with your nose once this is finished." Gazzy jumped up and ran to stuff a paper towel in his nostrils while Nudge pushed him to the side to put water on the paper towel she grabbed. Gazzy glanced over at me nervously as Nudge shoved half of the wet paper towels into his hand. I glared at him and he looked down quickly.

As the were scrubbing, I heard Nudge mutter, "What is with Max today? We give each other broken noses all the time! Plus, we heal fast enough it hardly matters."

"Must be her time of month," came a voice from the stairs. I whipped around.

"What does that mean?" Gazzy asked sweetly while Nudge made barfing sounds.

"Iggy!" I shouted. "It means Iggy's a moron," I told Gazzy. "And, for your information, it's not." I stormed upstairs, only to collide with Fang. I staggered back. Fang looked at me and raised an eyebrow.

"Doesn't matter," I muttered. Fang jerked his head toward the stairs, telling me to go downstairs. "I'm going to wake Angel up."

"I'm already up," came a voice from down the hall.

"Of course you are," I muttered.

"You know, Max, you should just tell them that you want us to act more behaved in your mom's house." I sighed.

"Is that it?" Iggy snarked from downstairs. Curse his enhanced hearing. "You want us to be good little birdies?"

"Come on, guys," I ordered Angel and Fang. "Let's go downstairs. I need to talk to the Flock." We walked downstairs, where Iggy now had started making breakfast while Nudge and Gazzy sat at the table. I noticed that Gazzy was holding his nose straight with one hand and holding a fresh bundle of paper towels to the bottom of his nose in the other hand. It would probably stop bleeding in a few minutes and the bone would probably heal within a few hours, thanks to our enhanced ability to heal given to us by the same scientists that gave us our wings.

Once everyone was in the kitchen, I decided to launch into my monologue. Now was a perfect time to do it, too, seeing that Mom and Ella were out buying clothes.

"Listen, everyone," I began, unsure of how they would take this, "things have changed. We don't have to be mutant freaks always on the run anymore." A few bird kids flinched. "Now is the time to...try to have a, uh, normal life." Silence. "Let's behave a little nicer, for starters. No breaking bones or fighting. Iggy and Gazzy, no bombs. I mean it.

"Lastly," I added, knowing the Flock wouldn't like what I was going to say next, "this is my mom's house. We will be following her rules. My orders." The room erupted into arguments.

"No way!" Iggy shouted. "She's gonna make us do stuff like go to school and shopping and limit our TV!"

"And we'll never be able to even get materials for bombs to build outside!" Gazzy protested.

"OMG!" Nudge yelled. "What if she doesn't let me wear my pink converse and she makes me wear my hair in certain ways and what if..."

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!" I screamed. The Flock stared at me, surprised at my sudden outburst. "How many times have we wished we were just normal kids? How many times did I wish it?"

"Umm..." Angel thought out loud, "at least twenty. Probably more, but I can't count past twenty." I grinned, despite myself.

"Listen, guys. We can pick our own futures now."

"And always carry the burden of our wings," Iggy snapped, still focused on breakfast. "Every time I open my eyes I am reminded of what I am from my lack of sight. Every time I close my eyes I remember what I am when memories flash across my mind. We're not normal, Max. We will never be normal. We will still have wings, air sacs, and red blood cells with nuclei. We can pretend to be something, but we can't change our DNA." I heard a sob and saw a tear fall from Nudge's eye. I sent Iggy a death glare, which he somehow felt and shifted uncomfortably under. I walked over to Nudge and hugged her.

"Oh, Max," she sobbed, "it's just that Iggy's right and we can never be normal and even if The School is gone what if there are still whitecoats out there who want to find us and hurt us and what if they get to Ella and Dr. Martinez and-" I clamped a hand over her mouth and looked her in the eye.

"Nudge, we don't have to be human to be normal kids," I said softly. "We can wear pink converse and our hair in cute ways. We can have fun and act like any other person. Not to mention, the School is gone." Nudge sniffed and looked up.

"You really know so?" she asked.

"Yes," I said confidently. "And by the way, Iggy and Gazzy," I said, looking up at the two of them, "Mom won't do that. We won't have to go to school, and I'm sure you can build small bombs outside."

"Right," Iggy snorted. "Breakfast is ready," he added. There were whoops of excitement as everyone ran to the cupboard to grab plates. We all lined up by the stove. When it was my turn to serve myself food, I heaped eggs and bacon onto my plate. By the time we were all on thirds, we heard the door open and I turned my head to see Mom and Ella walk in through the door with bags of clothes from various stores.

"Hey guys," Ella called. Hellos chorused out from the table.

"Hey, Max, can I talk with you?" Mom asked.

"Um, sure," I muttered. I ran over to the sink and put my plate down.

"Put it in the dishwasher, Max," Mom ordered. I bristled at the order and hesitated. I felt the Flock's eyes boring into me, testing me. Slowly, I picked my plate back up and rinsed it off. I slipped it into the dishwasher and stood up. "Over here," my mom said, gesturing towards her room. She shut the door.

"Max, I uh, I've noticed that you, um...you don't really wear a bra, do you?" she said without looking at me. I froze.

"In case you haven't noticed," I snapped, "I have wings. When I was old enough to wear...bras, Jeb bought some for me, but we couldn't figure out how I could wear them with my wings. He didn't know how to sew, so he couldn't make something that worked." Mom exhaled.

"Well... I've been thinking of a design that I could probably make work," she said. "It would make flying a lot more comfortable." I just stared at her.

"Sure," I said finally. After she measured me, I quickly walked out of there to find Fang doing the dishes.

"Where are the others?" I asked.

"Upstairs," he answered. I nodded and went up the stairs to get more sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 (Max POV)**

The next day, at breakfast, my life was changed forever.

"Hey, guys," Mom said to us when she walked into the kitchen.

"Hey," I muttered.

"I've been thinking," she began, "that school would probably be a good option for the six of you." I froze, my fork halfway to my mouth. I looked up and stared at my mother. I glanced at Iggy. He was giving a houseplant an _I told you so_ stare. I rolled my eyes at him and turned to face my mother.

"No," I said flatly and returned to eating my food.

"Come on, Max," my mom said. "You'll go to the same school system as Ella, which is a private school, so it won't be too bad. Besides, my house, my rules." I was at a loss for words.

"No," I repeated, feeble this time.

"I told you, Max," Iggy spat.

"Shut up, Iggy," I snarled. "Fine," I said to Mom, "but this won't be pretty." She grinned, but her smile faltered once the Flock erupted into chaos.

"Max!" Nudge screeched. "What if this is like with Anne and we get attacked and people find out about our wings and you and Fang and maybe Iggy date people and there's drama and you won't act normal and I thought you said-" Gazzy clamped a hand over her mouth.

"School's so boring!" he complained. "It would suck."

"We're not going," came a voice we rarely heard. The Flock was silenced, but Fang talks a lot more to me than he does to them. I was unfazed. I looked at Fang, eyebrows raised.

"And why is that?" I asked.

"Dangerous."

"Why so?" I pressed.

"The School may be gone, but what would happen if someone found out about our wings?"

"They won't," Mom said flatly. "Not unless you tell them, which you must avoid at all costs. You can wear sweatshirts to hide your wings. There's no uniform, and like I said, my roof, my rules. Conversation closed." We finished breakfast silently. When I went upstairs to my room, I found a few strange looking bras on my bed. It looked like a normal bra, except it hat two loops to go around my wings. There was a clasp in the middle of the back as well as on each of the loops. I shut my door and tried it on. I hated it immediately, but I still put my shirt on over it, knowing that Mom was making me wear it. I sighed and flopped onto my bed. Maybe being a normal kid wasn't all it was cracked up to be.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three (Max POV)**

Today was the big day. We went school shopping a week ago, and it had been a month since Mom broke the news to us. We would be going to school on the first day, starting just like everyone else. I rolled out of bed and slipped a sweatshirt and leggings on. I trudged down the stairs, not particularly hungry. Mom was cooking today. She told Iggy that he deserved a break. She handed me a plate of food as I walked into the kitchen. I glanced down to find scrambled eggs, bacon, and fruit. I sat down at the kitchen table, the last kid to do so. Nobody spoke. I poked at my eggs.

"Come on, Max," Angel said. "You can't starve yourself."

"I'm not hungry," I mumbled. Everyone stared at me. "Does anyone want my food?"

"You're not going to eat anything?" Nudge asked, suspicious.

"Nah," I muttered. "I don't think I could keep it down." I pushed my plate forward, the other five dived for it, pushing pieces of food from my plate onto theirs. Except for Fang. He just watched me silently as I went upstairs to brush my teeth.

SCENE-BREAK-DA-DA-DA-DA-SCENE-BREAK

We had already established that we would be taking the bus. The bus that went to the high school came earlier than the one that went to the K-8th school, so Iggy, Fang, and I waited at that stop. Next year, Ella would wait with us, but for now, we were alone. The yellow and black vehicle came around the corner and stopped. The stop sign popped out and the doors opened. I tried not to stare. We didn't take the bus with Anne, so everything was new. As we stepped on the bus, nobody turned to look at us. Nobody said anything about us being experiments. We just sat down at some empty seats in the middle. Fang and I in one seat and Iggy in the one across from us. Fang put earbuds into his ears. He took the plug end of them and put it into his pants pocket. It was his way of pretending he couldn't be talked to. I knew it was as much for me as it was for the other kids on the bus. I rolled my eyes and pulled out a book.

Once the bus jerked to a stop, the students started piling out. I slipped my backpack on. As I stepped onto the sidewalk just outside of the high school with Fang at my right and Iggy at my left, I took a deep breath and walked forward. Once we entered the doors, we found ourselves in a sea of students going in every direction.

"We have different homerooms," Iggy muttered. I nodded. I glanced at my room number. A372.

"Alright, then," I said. "See you guys at the end of the day." They nodded uneasily. I walked over to the nearest set of stairs and went to the third floor. As I made my way over to the seventy second room of wing A, I passed by the science rooms. I froze at the smell of disinfectant. _Keep going, Max,_ I urged myself. I took a deep breath and kept walking to my homeroom.

As soon as I walked in, I felt eyes on me. Ella warned me that this school was small enough that everyone knew each other. They'd know I was new immediately. I also noticed that they, having the luxury of no wings to hide, were, wearing, for the most part, nice clothes. I kept my head down and chose a desk at the back. I heard the conversations around me. I could probably pick out what anyone was saying with my raptor hearing, but years of living with Nudge taught me how to ignore talking.

"Are you new or something?" a haughty female voice said, startling me. I looked up to see a girl with blond hair and striking green eyes look at me from the desk over. She had high cheekbones and an amused expression on her face.

"Yeah," I said flatly, not inviting conversation.

"Where are you from?" Nowhere. We hadn't rehearsed an answer for this.

"What does it matter to you?" I snapped.

"Woah. Touchy much?" she smirked. "You won't last a day here." The girl sitting in front of me turned around and smirked at Blondie, as if they knew each other.

"Lay off it, Tessa. How would you have liked to moved right before high school started?" It was my turn to roll my eyes.

"I can fight my own battles, thanks," I snarked at the girl. She stared at me, hurt. I softened my face. "Max," I said, nodding at her.

"Max?" snorted Tessa. "Like, the boy's name?" I sent her a death glare that could even silence Iggy. She didn't even squirm. I decided I liked her. She was a fighter.

"Short for Maxima. But I hate that name." The girl in front nodded, her brown hair bobbing.

"I'm Ari," she said. I choked. She gave me a weird look. Memories flashed across my mind. I forced them away. "It's short for Arianna," she said slowly. "Don't freak out."

"Can I...can I call you _anything_ other than..Ari?" I asked, finding it hard to force that last word out. She gave me a strange look.

"Uh, no. What's the big deal, anyways?" The big deal? The big deal was that Ari was...was…

"Welcome to my homeroom!" came a voice from the front. The three of us turned to the front, where a man wearing a collared shirt stood. I zoned out and thought about Fang and Iggy. How were they faring? I hoped they were all right. Once the teacher finished his long, boring monologue, we all filed out of the room. Today was going to be worse than I thought.

SCENE-BREAK-DA-DA-DA-DA-SCENE-BREAK

I had a few more classes after that. They were all the same. Rules, norms. Everything was fine, until I got to P.E. We had to change clothes. When I walked into the locker rooms, I noticed that there weren't any stalls, and the showers didn't have curtains, so I couldn't change in them. I froze. The nearest bathrooms were...somewhere. This maze of a school was driving me insane. I weighed my options. I could draw too much attention to myself and refuse to change. I could try to find another bathroom somewhere in the school. Or I could wait for everyone else to change and change after them, thus risking being late and being walked in on. Changing with everyone else wasn't going to work. I weighed my options. The only choice I really had was to wait for everyone else to change. Now, how to stall? The other girls walked into the locker room, going around me. I quickly recovered and kept going. I saw Ari... _anna_ and Tessa claim lockers in the back corner. They were speaking quietly and kept glancing at me. I walked over to them and put my stuff in a locker next to theirs. They stared at me.

"What the heck do _you_ want?" Tessa asked me, scowling. Little did they know, I'd heard every word of their little conversation with my raptor hearing.

"I'm not weird, you know," I said quietly. They just stared at me. "Everything that I do or say has a reason behind it. Ari, I think your name is fine, it's just... _Ari_ is a word that brings back bad memories. Sorry if I offended you."

"How did you know what we were talking about?" Arianna asked suspiciously. I shrugged.

"You weren't talking as quietly as you thought."

"Um, we were whispering," Tessa objected, her green eyes narrowing.

"Loudly," I countered, suddenly wishing I had never said anything at all. Arianna and Tessa just stared at me.

"I could just barely hear Ari," Tessa said, not convinced. I winced at her last word. Images flashed through my mind. Wings crudely sewn onto a monster's back. A boy stripped of his childhood because of the School. Because of me. A father who chose mutants over his own seven year old son. Because of me. Because of me. Because of me.

"MAX!" Arianna yelled, trying to get my attention. I snapped my gaze back up to her eyes. "I asked you if you could leave while we're getting changed." I nodded and mumbled something under my breath. I wasn't exactly sure what I said, but apparently it was answer enough for Arianna, because she nodded. I looked around the locker room, and only a few girls plus Tessa and Arianna were still in there. I chose a locker and fiddled around with my stuff until the last of the girls walked out, glancing at me as they walked through the door. I quickly changed.

Once I had my shirt on, I knew it wasn't going to work. My wings felt smashed and were visible through my shirt. I slipped my sweatshirt on. I wouldn't take it off if my life depended on it. As I walked outside into the huge gymnasium, I felt ghost eyes watching me. But when I looked up, I saw no one looking at me. I wasn't even the only kid with a sweatshirt on. I guess the gym must have been cold, but I don't get cold as easily as humans do.

The other students were walking around the edges of the painted boundaries of a basketball court. I quickly walked over to join them, but still walked by myself. Suddenly, I felt unspeakably and unimaginably alone. I knew that Iggy and Fang had a few classes together, but they had none with me. I had the same lunch period with them, though.

Gym class today was nothing more than introductions and setting up rules. We did play soccer ***** at the end, though. I waited for everyone else to change and leave the locker room before I switched my gym shirt for a t shirt with slits in the back for my wings and a sweatshirt. Great. Now it was time for lunch, and according to Ella, this was going to be a social nightmare.

 ***AN: yup, I'm an American, and so is Max, so she would say soccer.**

 **Sorry that this is a filler chapter, but it's necessary. And the out of character feel. Any suggestions on how to keep Max in character? I'll add a Maximum (Get it? Get it? :D) of one more chapter before the next weekend. But only if I get a review! Actually, I'll add two chapters if it's someone who hasn't reviewed yet!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four-Max**

As I walked out of the dressing room from gym class, I clenching my fists and grit my teeth at the crowd of students I was swimming in. I walked to my locker-on the third floor. I grabbed my lunchbox-completely black and gray-and slammed my locker door shut. I heard a teacher poke their head out of their room and yell at me, but I didn't process their words. I quickly discovered this morning that there was a detour around the science rooms, but it was much longer. It was worth it, though. I couldn't afford a breakdown. However, I had science after lunch, and I didn't know what I'd do…

As I finally made my way into the cafeteria, I (literally) sniffed out Fang and Iggy and sat beside Fang. He nodded at me in acknowledgement. Iggy's nostrils twitched as I sat down. A couple of girls at the table next to us glanced over to the three of us and started whispering. Even though we could hear them, I ignored them. Fang's lips were pursed into a thin line, and Iggy opened his mouth. I kicked him.

"Ow!" he complained. The girls, no longer listening, swiveled their heads towards us. Among them were Arianna and Tessa.

"There are three of you?" Tessa sneered. Fang's eyes flashed.

"Not exactly," Iggy smirked. "Max is the bitchiest."

"Ig-James!" I snarled. _What if Angel hears that word?_ was my silent follow up question.

"Well, you kinda are," Iggy pointed out. Fang nodded in agreement. I slapped his arm. A passing lunch monitor shot me a warning look. I just rolled my eyes once they turned their head. Tessa tried to hide her grin, but failed miserably. I scowled.

"Maxima wouldn't tell us where-" I glared at Tessa.

"Max," I spat.

"I'm not calling you Max until you can call Ari-" Fang and Iggy froze and slid their gaze over to Tessa.

"Ari is dead," Iggy said, shaking. "Right, Max? He's not coming..."

"Hold up," Arianna interrupted, confused. "I'm a girl and I'm certainly not _dead_." Fang turned to look at her, and slumped his shoulders in relief when he saw that it was just another high school girl. "And what is it with the three of you and the name Ari? What do you mean, 'coming'? There's nothing weird about me, I just don't like the name Arianna!" By the end of that, Arianna was yelling, and the whole cafeteria was staring at us. I refused to break Arianna's gaze.

"You understand nothing," I said quietly, getting up to throw my trash away Iggy and Fang followed suit.

"There's something you're not telling us, Maxima," Tessa called across the lunchroom. "Something pretty important."

"Maximum," I corrected, whispering even though we were out of earshot. "My name is Maximum." Fang slid his gaze over to me. I blinked away tears forming in my eyes and walked to my locker without saying a word. The great and powerful Maximum Ride, _crying_ because of some girl. Wow. Some hero I am.

Soon, the other kids began filling the hallways. I knew that I had science next. I had been dreading this all day. I walked to the classroom, holding a notebook so tightly my knuckles turned white. I had been standing outside the door for a few minutes, unable to walk in, so I was the last one in. I saw Tessa, but not Arianna. I could smell Clorox wipes that were in a side cabinet. Sinks lining the walls with one soap dispenser every few feet. Counters that smelled of dead frogs and eyes and hearts and whatever else kids had dissected in the past. Disinfectant couldn't hide the stench of death. I sat down at a table with _Maxima_ written in neat handwriting. Breathing through my nose wasn't a good idea. Breathing through my mouth wasn't, either. Then I could taste it. I wasn't sure how long I was going to last.

"Maxima!" Tessa yelled. "I've been trying to get your effing attention _forever_." That was when I flipped.

I flew up out of my chair and pushed Tessa to the ground. Grabbing her wrists and digging my knees into the floor, I pinned her to the ground. She screamed, and the teacher was throwing threats at me that I only half heard.

"It's not Maxima!" I screeched. "And you-you are just some clueless human girl who doesn't know when to stop."

"And neither do you, apparently," came a sarcastic voice from the doorway. I looked up. Fang. "Get the hell off of her. What's your problem?"

"Can't you smell it?" I seethed. "I'm going. Leaving. Now." I jumped up and ran, faster than the teacher, faster than Fang, faster than all of them. Once I was at a forest, I ripped off my sweatshirt and unfurled my wings as I jumped into the air. I flew as fast as I could, not knowing or caring where I was going. It didn't matter. None of it mattered. A face. Bulging, non-human eyes. Slimy skin that dripped onto the ground. I shoved the images out of my head. None of it mattered. None of _them_ mattered. It's just the Flock. Just us. That's all.

Hours later, I noticed just how far I had gone and just how dark it was outside. I turned around and made my way back to our-

Ella's house. Not ours. Never ours.

As soon as I burst through the door, Mom was yelling at me.

"Attacking a student? Calling her a human? Flying off, making me believe you were dead? I thought you were above that, Max!" I stared at her. She was crying. Fang was standing beside her, saying the same things with his eyes. The rest of the Flock and Ella were sitting in the living room pretending to watch a movie, but really watching us. "You're grounding, Max." I started.

"What?" I snapped. "You can't ground me."

"I most certainly can," she retorted, a sob breaking out of her. "I was scared, Max."

"Well, if you had smelled that-" I sucked in a breath. "The science room...it was all death and disinfectant..." There were tears streaming down my face, but they were not for me. They were for him. A boy, ripped from his parents. From his species. Green, staring at me through bars.

"Then how did I make it through?" Fang snapped. "And Iggy?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Rub it in all you want," I said softly, "but I always knew the two of you were stronger than me." I stormed up to my room, slamming the door behind me. Being normal sucks.

 **AN: Oh my gosh, I am so sorry that this is what, two weeks late? I didn't realize how hard it would be to balance schoolwork with fanfiction. School started recently for me. I'm in eighth grade and I'm taking high school geometry. It's a lot. I promise I will try to be more frequent, and I'm really sorry about how late this is!**


	5. The Story Must Go On

Hello and thank you to the seven people following this story! I hope you still care, because I have plans to continue! I'm back in fanfiction!


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